Driver&#39;s leg rest for use in automobiles



Nov. 8, 1955 sT 2,722,974

DRIVER'S LEG REST FOR USE IN AUTOMOBILES Filed April 24, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VEN1-"OR Everett L. Stcgner ATTORNEY;

E. L. STAGNER DRIVERS LEG REST FOR USE IN AUTOMOBILES Nov. 8, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 24, 1953 3M m 7 L M m s w 8 v 5 E \\\\\HV United Everett L. Stagner, Colorado City, Tex., assignor of fortynine per cent to Charles H. Cooper, Snyder, Tex.

Application April 24, 1953, Serial No. 350,845 4 Claims. (01. 155-165) This invention relates to leg rests and more specifically to a drivers leg rest for use in automobiles.

In operating an automobile, there is a tendency on the part of the driver, particularly when driving for continued long periods of time, to move the portion of the right leg above the foot, transversely in an arc to the right and toward the seat while the foot is on the accelerator pedal. This is due to a strain upon such leg muscles as the extensor longus digitorum, peroneus longus and peroneus brevis, and the strain and consequent pain grows in proportion to the time the muscles are contracted.

An important object of this invention is to provide a drivers leg rest for use in automobiles which rest tends to prevent the transverse arcuate movement of the drivers leg, and thus lessens fatigue of the leg muscles.

A drivers leg rest should be so constructed and employed that it does not retard blood circulation while it is in use.

Another important object of the invention is to provide such a rest which will not impede blood circulation, is comfortable when in use, the user feels'very little pressure upon the leg and minor movements of the leg, such as in increasing the pressure upon the pedal are compensated for by the rest.

A further important object is to provide a readilyadjustable rest for the leg. 1

Additionally, an important object is to provide such a rest which may be swung to an out-of-the-way position when not in use.

Furthermore, an important object is to provide an adjustable leg rest in which some of the elements thereof have dual functions.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent during the course of the following detailed description of the invention, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, forming a portion of this disclosure and in which drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the leg rest attached to an automobile front seat and in use.

Fig. 2 is an .elevation of the leg rest as attached to the automobile front seat in position for use, as shown in full lines, and in an out-of-the-way position as shown in dotted lines.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged view, mostly in elevation of a support means and adjusting means for an arm, shown in Figs. 4 and 6, longitudinally of the support means, a portion of the adjusting means being shown in vertical section.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged view of the leg rest in the outof-the-way position, indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 2, and showing a portion of a carrying arm and a support therefor in section.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged section of the movable connections of the arm of Figs. 4 and 6 with its support means.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged elevation of the arm of Fig. 4, its movable connections with the support means and tates Patent 2 with the arm carrying a leg resting means, shown in full and dotted lines.

Fig. 7 is a view partly in vertical section substantially on the line 7-7 of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a view, partly in section of the leg resting means of Fig. 6 and with a universal joint associated therewith and with the arm of Figs. 4 and 6.

In the drawings, wherein for the purpose of illustration is shown a preferred embodiment of the invention and wherein similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, the letter A designates a vehicle; B, driver thereof; and C the leg rest.

The vehicle A is shown as an automobile, having a front seat structure 10, including a front frame panel 11 extending downwardly towards the floor 12 and which panel provides a support for the leg rest C. The vehicle A is shown to include a conventional accelerator pedal 13 forwardly of the panel 11.

In Fig. 1, the driverB is illustrated with the right leg 15 extended so that the sole of the footwear 16 of the right foot is upon the pedal 13.

The leg rest C comprises support means 2%); an arm 21 adjustably carried thereby; longitudinally adjusting means 22 for adjusting the arm longitudinally of the support means 20; swingable adjusting means 23 for swingably carrying the arm 21 to pivot forwardly of the support means 20; pivoting means 24 for swinging the arm 21 on a pivot normal to the longitudinal axis of the support means 20; friction means 25 for selectively lengthening or shortening the arm 21; leg resting means 26; a universal joint 27 connecting the arm 21 and leg resting means 26; and keeper means 28 for the arm 21.

Shown best in Figs. 2, 3, 5 and 6, the support means 20 includes a bracket 30 constructed and arranged for its longitudinal axis to be substantially horizontal and comprising a pair of apertured terminal portions or cars 31, each having a fastener-accommodating opening 32 and joined, at their inner ends, as by outwardly-extending portions 33, to an elongated central portion 34 having a slot 35 preferably extending nearly the full length of the portion 34. Screws 36 (Fig. 2) may be provided as fasteners to secure the bracket 30 to the front frame panel 11.

The arm 21, shown mainly in Figs. 2, 4 and 6, preferably comprises two elongated telescoping portions 4% and 41 with the normally lower portion 40 being cylindrical, with a bore 42 opening at its normally upper end and its opposite end reduced by being flattened to provide opposite faces and provided with a pivot pin accommodating opening 43. I prefer to slot the open end of the portion 40 with a plurality of spaced-apart longitudinally-extending slots 44 and also exteriorly screw thread this end for use in connection with the friction means 25 to be subsequently described. The arm portion 41 may be solid, extend into the bore 42 and terminate at its outer end in a ball (shown in Fig. 8) to form a part of the universal joint 27.

Referring mainly to Figs. 3 and 5, the longitudinally adjusting means 22 for the arm 21 includes a slide or carriage 45 which may be a small plate, with a smooth bore 46 extending from its outer to its inner face, and the slide or carriage being provided with a screw threaded bore 47 at its upper end portion which end portion projects above the plane of the upper edge of the bracket central portion 34. This may be provided by rolling the upper end portion and then interiorly screw threading it. Welded, or otherwise fixedly secured to one of the outwardly extending portions 33, is an upwardlyextending arm 48 (Fig. 3) with a bore 49 axially aligned with the bore 47 and rotatably carrying the head end of the shank of a screw member 50 while the screw threaded shank extends into the bore 47 in screw threaded engagement with the screw threads thereof. To prevent the screw member 50 from separating from the arm 48, I prefer to secure a washer 51, as by a pin 52, to the head end of the shank in facing engagement with one face of the arm 48 while a shoulder 53 of the head of the screw is in facing engagement with the other face of the arm 48. The slide or carriage 45 is retained in sliding engagement with the bracket central portion 34 by a screw or member 54 which has a smooth periphery at its head end and which periphery engages the walls of the slot 35 as may be seen in Fig. 5. Other functions of the screw 54 will be described in connection with the pivoting means 24 to be subsequently described. Rotating the screw 50 in one direction will cause the carriage 45 to travel toward the left in Fig. 3 and opposite rotation thereof will cause the carriage to travel in the opposite direction for adjustment of the arm 21 along the bracket 30.

Means 23 for swingably carrying the arm 21 to pivot forwardly of the support means 20 includes, also, portions of the means 24-. There is provided a body portion 55 having a forwardly-extending yoke portion 56 to receive the flattened lower end of the arm portion 40, and provided with a pair of bores axially aligned with the opening 43 to receive a suitable pivot pin 57. As may be appreciated in Fig. 5, the arm 21 may swing in a limited way on this pivot pin 57 and is held in an outwardly-swung position by a tension spiral spring 58 with one end of the latter secured to the lower extremity of the arm portion 40 and the other end secured to the body portion 55. Clearly, the arm 21 may be manuaily swung to the right in Fig. until the fiat edge of the arm portion 40 abuts the fiat face 59 of the body portion 55.

The pivoting means 24 for swinging the arm 21 on a pivot normal to the longitudinal axis of the support means includes, in addition to the screw 54 of the means 22 and the body portion 55 of the means 23, a flat washer 69 mounted upon the screw 54 and bearing, at one face, against the central portion 34 of the bracket and bearing at its other face against a lock washer 61 which, in turn bears against the shoulder of the head of the screw 54. The body portion is provided with a suitable screw threaded socket 62 to receive the screw threaded portion of the shank of the screw 54. By loosening the screw 54 the body portion 55 may be rotated. However, such rotation is limited since, as shown particularly in Fig. 7, the body portion 55 has an arcuate groove 63 in its inner face 64 into which extends a lug or projection 65 carried by the central portion 34 of the bracket 30. This limits movement of the arm 21 to substantially the full line position in Fig. 7 or to the dotted position in this same Fig. 7 (the latter position being the inoperative or out-of-the-way position).

The friction means 25, cooperating with the slotted and screw threaded end of the arm portion 40 comprises a nut having an opening for slidably receiving the arm portion 41 and a screw threaded bore extending therefrom and adapted for screw threaded engagement with the screw threads upon the free end of the arm portion 40. When this nut 70 is screwed down upon the arm 40 it tends to force the arm parts between adjacent slots 44 inwardly and thus frictionally engage the adjacent periphery of the arm 41 to retain it, as is now apparent, in longitudinally adjusted positions relative to the arm portion 40.

In Figs. 6 and 8, the leg resting means 26 is shown as a resilient pad which may be of rubber cemented or otherwise conventionally secured to a support 76 which may be a slightly dished plate. Preferably the pad 75 is covered by a suitable covering 77 as soft flexible plastic. This means 26 is adapted to engage the leg 15 of the driver B substantially as in Fig. 1, as one example of its position.

The universal joint 27 of Fig. 8 is of conventional construction, including a ball 80 fixed to the normally upper end of the arm portion 41 and cooperating with a suitable socket structure 81 which structure has a pivoted connection as at 82 with the central part of the support 76, by means of a suitable pivot member. This permits, among other positions of the means 26, the positions shown in Figs. 6 and 8.

In order to retain the arm 21 in its out-of-the-way position, shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, I prefer to provide a keeper means 28 which may comprise a somewhat U-shaped arm (best shown in Fig. 6), and carried by and extending forwardly from the bracket central portion 34.

The leg rest C may be adjusted toward or away from the drivers leg, the telescoping arm 21 may be lengthened or shortened manually as desired and moved forwardly or backwardly in a limited are by movements of the drivers right leg and the leg resting means may be caused to take the most comfortable position desired by the driver, due to these forward or backward positions coupled with the universal joint provided. Moreover the arm may be readily swung to an out-of-the-way position and retained in such position.

Various changes may be made to the form of the invention herein shown and described without departing from the spirit of the invention or scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A drivers leg rest for attachment to the front seat of an automobile, said rest including support means provided with an elongated bracket for attachment in a substantial horizontal position to said front seat, said bracket having a lonigudinaily extending slot; an arm; adjusting means for adjusting said arm longitudinally of said bracket including a slide and an elongated substantially horizonaily-disposed member extending into said slot and slide; adjusting means for swingably carrying said arm to pivot forwardly of said bracket, including a body portion pivotally carried by said member and provided with a pivot pivotally supporting said arm, the longitudinal axis of said pivot being substantiaily normal to the longitudinal axis of said member, said adjusting means including means to urge forward swinging of said arm; means permitting selective rotation of said body portion about the 1ongitudinal axis of said elongated member to a position wherein said arm is substantially horizontal and wherein said arm is slightly off dead center when upwardly extending; and a leg resting means carried by said arm.

2. A drivers leg rest according to claim 1 characterized in that said means to urge forward swinging of said arm is resilient means and comprises a tension spiral spring secured, at one end portion thereof, to the lowermost end of said arm below said pivot, and secured, at the other end portion thereof, to said body portion.

3. A drivers leg rest for attachment to the front scat of an automobile, said rest including support means provided with an elongated bracket for attachment in a substantially horizontal opsition to said front seat, said brackct having a longitudinally extending slot; an arm; adjusting means for adjusting said arm longitudinally of said bracket including a slide having a screw threaded bore with its longitudinal axis paralleling the longitudinal axis of said slot, an elongated member extending into said slot and slide, an upwardly extending arm rigid with said bracket and having a cylindrical bore axially aligned with said screw threaded bore, a screw, having a substantially smooth surfaced shank portion within said cylindrical bore and a screw threaded shank portion within said screw threaded bore with the screw threads of each in screw threaded cooperation, and means to prevent longitudinal movement of said screw with respect to said last mentioned arm; adjusting means for swingably carrying said first mentioned arm to pivot forwardly of said bracket, including a body portion pivotally carried by said elongated member and provided with a pivot pivotally supporting said first mentioned arm, the longitudinal axis of said pivot being substantially normal to the longitudinal axis of said elongated member, said swingable adjusting means including means to urge forward swinging of said first mentioned arm; means permitting selective rotation of said body portion about the longitudinal axis of said elongated member to a position wherein said first mentioned arm is substantially horizontal and wherein said first mentioned arm is slightly off dead center when upwardly extending; and a leg resting means carried by said first mentioned arm.

4. A drivers leg rest according to claim 3 characterized in that said elongated member has a smooth surfaced shank portion extending into said slot and slide and a terminal portion extending into said body portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent- UNITED STATES PATENTS 

